Tag: Japan

Made my way up to Shinjuku to Keio Plaza Hotel’s Lobby Gallery to see a gorgeous woodblock printing exhibition by some of Japan’s top printmakers. Super excited to see work by my lovely friend Louise Rouse included!

Louise’s pieces are brilliant standouts and her invitation to exhibit exemplifies a great future for a traditional craft.

Louise created her “Ropes, Cords, Bonds” and “Hybrids” pieces using Chine-colle techniques. Per Wikipedia, “Chine–collé is a special technique in printmaking, in which the image is transferred to a surface that is bonded to a heavier support in the printing process. One purpose is to allow the printmaker to print on a much more delicate surface, such as Japanese paper or linen, which pulls finer details off the plate.”

She is an Adjunct Professor in the art program at Temple University, Japan, and co-teaches workshops with master woodblock carver Motoharu Asaka. This summer they are offering a course to teach the full process of woodblock printmaking from start to finish. Don’t be intimidated, this class is open to beginners. You will become familiar with carving, printing, and paper handling all in the city of Tokyo. This is a great opportunity for an experience holiday in Japan. Their next 4-Day Intensive Course starts August 9:

For the month of July, Lori Ono‘s wintery image series, Snowfences, will be on display for you to enjoy. Snowfences is a series of photographs taken during a cold, snowy day in Idaho/Montana area of the US. Lori Ono is a Canadian author, illustrator, and photographer currently living in Tokyo. Definitely, stop by to see her work.

Not in Tokyo this month? Check out her online shop to see her work and order your own Snowfences imagery.

Like this:

What a beautiful shop! The Caran d’Arche Boutique in Ginza, Tokyo has bright new art supplies, all perfectly organized, I had to go! My skills at using these kinds of supplies is still quite new but a friend sat at the materials testing bar and soaked it all in. Watch the short video of her adorable test piece. The shop is a quiet, happy spot amongst the crowded hustle on the Ginza streets. Enjoy the visuals:

I’m still playing at finding the correct NeoColor Aquarelle crayon to water balance with the (7) colors I have at home:

Six of us, all members of Art Byte Critique, set out from our respective homes around the Tokyo Metro area and converged upon the 360+ year old, Ozu Washi paper store in the Nihonbashi area.

We each had our reasons for making this errand; Michelle wanted washi sheets for her contemporary nihonga painting idea. Lori was on a quest to find just the right texture, color, and pattern for her handmade bee-themed mamebon, bean-sized books. Patty, Louise, & Mia O were each looking for paper for their printmaking projects and I was there out of curiosity.

Ozu Washi fits the widest range of washi paper enthusiasts. They inform the tourists, yet showcase their centuries of consistently top quality paper in various forms throughout the other floors with a large room set up as a museum. Lovely displays of amazing art pieces utilizing washi, cones of paper yarns, videos, and classes all in one place!

We each walked out with beautiful sheets of washi that handled each of our widely varying needs. My purchase was a package of five tissue paper thin, buttery soft, all white sheets to create a backdrop for photographing my artwork.

Oguro Sensei brought out his iPad to show us additional information regarding his business; comfortable using modern technology. Some of his offerings are listed on his website, yet many, many more are available in his shop.

Morihei has been around since 1933 and is dedicated to the absolute highest quality whetstones for mokuhanga carving chisels, chyoukin metal etching tools, nigiri sheers, sushi knives, and swords. The variety in each stone was astounding, the color, the grit, the size, all had a unique purpose. Oguro Sensei said many sushi chefs come to Japan to purchase the excellent knives but then need to return to buy a whetstone from him to keep those knives sharp.

Place a drop of water on the stone; a slowly sinking drop is better and the water stays around to provide lubricant for the item one is sharpening.

If the water drop sinks too quickly, it is a poor quality stone.

Both Patty and Mia needed to purchase a stone for their mokuhanga tools that day and this is what our group, Art Byte Critique, is about, supporting each other so we can each successfully move forward with our own work.

This large whetstone is used to sharpen one’s sword!

Mia O is a Selected Artist at the International Mokuhanga Conference in Honolulu, Hawaii. Currently her work can be seen at the UH Manoa Art Building Main Gallery. Mia was among a handful of printmakers to be selected for acquisition awards by the Hawaii State Foundation for Culture and the Arts, Arts in Public Places!!

Mia will be showing additional work available for purchase in the Chinatown Artists Lofts First Friday Open Studios event room 203 – Ark of the Unicorns Gallery Space

Morihei – Knife & Whetstone Shop

111-0053 JAPAN

Taito-Ku, Tokyo

1-28-6 Asakusa-bashi

Approx 2 min walk from either the JR Asakusa-bashi Stn or the Asakusa-bashi Subway Stn

Visited the lovely seaside town of Toba Mie Prefecture, this week. Toba is well worth the visit. Gorgeous in that it has been able to keep a lot of it’s old character in the beautiful wooden buildings, temples, shrines, and continue to be friendly and outgoing to visitors.

A photo journey of my visit through Toba and the bonus of enjoying an exhibition by the students from Joshibi University. Their task; to speak with the people of Toba and create artwork from these conversations.

Accountant TanukiHabuShyuu Tanuki

At Sainenji Temple, Artist Sarah Brasier spotted these two little cats in an antique hanging scroll which she chose to recreate in a single painting. Their very oddness, as if the original painter had never seen cats irl.Pinhole Camera Photography by Furuichi KakoFuruichi Kako’s Pinhole Camera Photography in the gorgeous Kadoya Bldg

Glass work by Ootake Mika in Kadoya BldgOotake Mika: In Toba-shi “…I feel there is a shared space rather than a flow of time.”Kubo Miki – Oil on CanvasOmori Miho: Spinning LiteKadoya Bldg – Previously a drugstore, it was the town’s bustling gathering point as remembered by a senior town member.I find the best things in the most out of the way places! Yummy, lemon, basil seed drink from Thailand…at the Circle K :)

Since 2012 I have been a member of Art Byte Critique here in Tokyo, Japan and it has been a game changer for me. We are an international group representing Japan and several countries around the world.

“Art Byte Critique (Tokyo)
Art Byte Critique was created in 2012 by Arthur Huang in response to a desire for a community of artists interested in sharing ideas and providing feedback for work; its purpose was to find a productive outlet for resources that could grow studio practice. The collective has become a touchstone or home base for the participating artists. The term “Art Byte” is a play on the Japanese (German-derived) word for part-time work, アルバイト (arubaito), as most of the participating artists also have other occupations. Driven by concerns about the sustainability of an artistic practice in the current globalized contemporary art environment, Art Byte Critique focuses less on the big picture of the contemporary art world and more on the development of a smaller, more actionable community of artists with a range of practices and perspectives. Monthly studio work discussion meetings run alongside regular communications via social media and blogs, as well as updates on creative events in the Tokyo area. There is no formal membership in Art Byte Critique, rather a conscious decision to create a fluid environment where all artists are informed of all activities and are invited to participate as and when they wish.”

Super proud to be a part of Art Byte Critique since its inception. Thank You, Arthur and fellow members members!

While we await anxiously to hear about a group proposal, here’s just a taste of what we have in the works coming up:

Oct 5 – 8: Art Byte Critique just rec’d the great news yesterday that we have been included in the upcoming Tokyo Art Book Fair for the 4th year in a row! 6 of us are participating this year, coordinated this year by Lori Ono. Also participating are; Yuko Kamei, Louise Rouse, Arthur J Huang, Patty Hudak, & Nick West

Today’s jet lagged post will be a bit haphazard so just sit back and enjoy the eclectic pacing of my latest adventures:

Everything is still moving forward for me to begin my Artist Residency with Tanks Arts Centre in Cairns, Australia next month! The butterfly research and design work I have been doing for these past months have been to fulfill a 5 year effort to build a wire crochet butterfly art installation.

Photo by Lori Ono

The biggest surprise came through a job transition from Japan to Hawaii. Inside a large dishpack moving box went all the materials I need to create my installation. Thankfully it is warm in both Hawaii and Cairns so a basic carry-on can hold all my clothes necessary. The box weighed almost 22KG!! No extra charge for my “luggage -in-a-box” Phew!

In the hotel in Japan, in the hotel in Hawaii, in the new apartment devoid of furniture, I work each day making steady progress:

Hot Metal Coloured Copper Wire Crochet work in Hawaiian sun. This is the start of the Evodia Tree.

Special thanks to SpamKNITsubi for the lovely welcome to Hawaii. Through her I was able to meet other fiber artists here in Hawaii and help HotXTea with his installation for Pow!Wow!Hawaii!

Rug Hooking the rainforest floor using a Locker hook:

A tree grows in a hotel room:

This is where it goes!

Details: Hey, SnB Ladies! Remember that fun green yarn I bought at Classe yarn shop in Daikanyama? It works exactly as I had hoped. The most non-arty person recently said to me, “Hey, that looks like grass!” :)